In this book there are some fraught, difficult, or otherwise uncomfortable themes and content discussed. Lancer takes place in a setting recovering from millennia of cruel anthrochauvinist rule – a fascist, imperial, Earth-first ideology that had little time, space, or care to acknowledge beings or perspectives that ran counter to their didactic tyranny.
We want to acknowledge that many phenomena and acts touched on in Lancer – slavery, exploitation, racism, directed hate, genocide, the stealing of indigenous land – are real phenomena, are ongoing acts of injustice and cruelty, and are not simply “fantasy" or “interesting devices” to use in a roleplaying game. Their inclusion in Lancer is by no means a flippant choice, intended to be read as endorsement, or idle thought.
We think it important also to acknowledge that both Tom and I are writing from the perspective of straight, cis, able-bodied men. When writing Lancer, we wanted to create a setting where humanity is – in the narrative present – at once in a state of utopia and working to affect it. We imagine that Union isn’t burdened by the same cultural definitions of gender that oppress and malign so many people who live under the umbrella of capitalism and empire and, as such, there is a wide spectrum of expression and identity in Union and among its constituent worlds.
At the risk of enacting further violence by depicting worlds and cultures where there are regressive or discriminatory stances on gender baked-in, we have decided not to codify in the rules how players may express themselves – please do note that this absence of canonical definition is absolutely not meant to be read as exclusion, but is meant instead to avoid flattening all possible stories into one “canon” definition of what it means to be gendered, transgender, nonbinary – to have a body in Lancer. We encourage you to play your characters how you see them, and consider them to be in-canon.
We hope that you create narratives and characters that stand against terrible abuses and prejudices. Lancer features no easy aliens to pass these transgressions upon, only other human beings; humanity alone are the architects of terrible cruelties, but we can also be the architects of better, more just futures – and presents.
Lancer is a game that involves war, combat, and facing the terrors of the galaxy – human-made or otherwise – but this does not mean a GM should force their players to encounter scenarios or content that could be triggering or harmful. If there is any canon assumption that would cause you or your players to feel unsafe or distressed, then it does not need to be included. We recommend utilizing the X Card as a tool to establish boundaries if necessary.
We believe that ideas of liberation, of radical antifascism and anti-hate, can begin around the table with friends and end in the streets, at the ballot box, and in all of our hearts. Sometimes around the table with friends is the only place where liberation – where fighting back – can happen. This does not diminish the impact that it can have.
That’s why we made Lancer: to help people fight back, if nowhere else then around the table with friends.
